Monthly Archives: May 2017

Certified party lacks standing to challenge certifier’s claims to fairness

Posted on May 31, 2017 by rtushnet

Camarda v. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc, 2015 WL 13159050, No. 13-00871 (D.D.C. Jul. 6, 2015) Westlaw’s impenetrable algorithm threw this up, and I’m blogging it now because of the relatively rare discussion of direct causation under Lexmark.  … Continue reading →

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Free to good home: parody t-shirts

Posted on May 30, 2017 by rtushnet

I’m cutting down on my collection a bit as I move.  Let me know if anyone wants these: Moose/Batman logo; 2 priceless tees; “Lacoste Intolerant” Beer parody Campbell’s, Seuss, Starbucks, Morton Salt; pole lamp not included ETA: dug out more … Continue reading →

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9th Circuit accepts irreparable harm finding in TM licensee breach case

Posted on May 30, 2017 by rtushnet

2Die4Kourt v. Hillair Capital Management, LLC, — Fed.Appx. —-, 2017 WL 2304376, No. 16-56217 (9th Cir. May 26, 2017)  The district court enjoined Hillair from using trademarks/publicity rights owned by 2Die4Kourt, Kimsaprincess, Inc., Khlomoney, Inc., Kourtney Kardashian, Kim Kardashian West, … Continue reading →

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Fee award justified in case involving fraud on the PTO

Posted on May 26, 2017 by rtushnet

Amusement Art, LLC v. Life is Beautiful, LLC, 2017 WL 2259672, No. 2-14-cv-08290 (C.D. Cal. May 23, 2017) Initial ruling discussed here.  Defendant LIB hosts the Life is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, Nevada—an annual event that features music, art, … Continue reading →

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high-tech look can’t fool reasonable consumers about orthotics

Posted on May 24, 2017 by rtushnet

Kommer v. Bayer Consumer Health, — F.Supp.3d —-, 2017 WL 2231162, 16 Civ. 1560 (S.D.N.Y. May 18, 2017) Bayer sells Dr. Scholl’s foot care products, including the Dr. Scholl’s Custom Fit Orthotics Inserts. In many stores, they are sold alongside … Continue reading →

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A box size whopper? Slack fill claims for candy continue

Posted on May 22, 2017 by rtushnet

Bratton v. Hershey Co., 2017 WL 2126864, No. 16–cv–4322 (W.D. Mo. May 16, 2017) Bratton sued over alleged slack fill in Reese’s Pieces and Whoppers candy boxes.  He alleged that: Consumers spend an average of 13 seconds making an in-store … Continue reading →

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Suing for false advertising as abuse of process

Posted on May 22, 2017 by rtushnet

Bobrick Washroom Equipment, Inc. v. Scranton Products, Inc., 2017 WL 2126320, No. 14-CV-00853 (M.D. Pa. May 16, 2017) In May 2014 SP sued Bobrick, alleging that it “carefully orchestrated a campaign to scare architects, product specifiers, procurement representatives, building owners, … Continue reading →

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coffee cup lid trade dress survives functionality challenge

Posted on May 22, 2017 by rtushnet

If I have the right image of the defendant’s coffee cup lid, this is a good example of the difficulties separating scope from validity: the challenged design is noticeably different from the registered design, and it seems to me that … Continue reading →

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Reading list: Shakespeare’s literary disputes

Posted on May 18, 2017 by rtushnet

Bonus points for beginning with a great Hamlet quote (the best use of which I ever saw was a production that arranged the scenes so that when Hamlet disparages what he’s reading as “words, words, words” he is reading his … Continue reading →

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New article: fixing incontestability

Posted on May 17, 2017 by rtushnet

With apologies to John Welch, who hates the term. Fixing Incontestability: The Next Frontier? Boston University journal of Science and Technology Law, Forthcoming Abstract Incontestability is a nearly unique feature of American trademark law, with a unique American implementation. The … Continue reading →

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